On April 20, more than 250 University community members met during a campuswide working-session to address five important Arcadia issues around: Budget Planning, Core Values, Communication Strategies, Shared Governance, and Aspirational Vision. 

During the three-hour working-session, faculty, staff, students, and alumni brainstormed questions composed around the above topics, including “How can we be entrepreneurial in addressing budget challenges?”, “How can we use our core values when making decisions?”, “How can we develop effective communications strategies across all audiences?”, “What might shared governance look like at Arcadia?”, and “What should we consider as our five- and ten-year visions?”  

The working session was scheduled in part from President Ajay Nair‘s desire to address important university issues as soon as possible. The session, and the rationale behind bringing all Arcadia constituents together to address such issues, had the full support of and encouragement by the Board of Trustees, who reviewed some of the data and outcomes at their May meetings. 

Feedback and themes compiled from the April 20 session have led to the establishment of a Budget Task Force, a Shared Governance Committee, and a 5- and 10-Year Aspirational Committee. The raw dialogue and themes are now available on “Arcadia UKnighted,” a community website portal that serves as an interactive forum for discussion. Visit arcadia.edu/uknighted to review the themes and feedback, and to join the discussion about Arcadia’s future.